


About the Education of Officers and Avengers

by SilverTonguedSlytherin1



Series: Military!Tony [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Civil War Team Iron Man, Don't Like Don't Read, Education, Gen, Military!Tony, Not Steve Friendly, Not Steve Rogers Friendly, Politics, Team Leader Tony Stark, Thor Trying to Understand Earth, Tony Stark Is the Leader of the Avengers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:07:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24041059
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverTonguedSlytherin1/pseuds/SilverTonguedSlytherin1
Summary: Lord Tony is a very generous man, in Thor's opinion. He has provided many tutors to his team. What Thor does not understand is why Friend Steve protests them. He brings it up in conversation with Lord Tony, and he is shocked at what he hears.
Series: Military!Tony [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1738261
Comments: 49
Kudos: 1267





	About the Education of Officers and Avengers

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is Team Tony and Not Steve Friendly, as stated in the tags. It is also canon divergent. Also, this fic is set in the MCU, and it is about the characters as they appear in the MCU. This means that Rogers might be a tactical genius in the comic books, but as it's not shown in the movies, it's not what he's based off of in this fic.  
> So please, save us all the trouble, and do not comment if any of these things offend you. It will just waste both of our time, especially as the comments are moderated. Thank you for understanding.

"I still do not understand the good Captain's offense at your generous offering of tutors, Friend Tony," Prince Thor says. He is the image of a crown prince in the wing-backed chair, but for the Pop-tart in his hand.

Tony sits across from him, something between the Lt. Col. Stark and the majority shareholder of one of the world's largest corporations. If asked, most would say this meeting is between Prince Thor and Iron Man, and they would be neither wholly correct or incorrect. Tony crosses one ankle over the opposite knee and takes a sip of bourbon before he responds, "You have said that in Asgard, officers are typically the children of other officers. They spend their early years being taught strategy and regulations, training for combat, yes?"

"Indeed," he nods. He won't rush Tony. Thor has learned that the Man of Iron often starts far away from a point, so he can go to it without confusion.

"On Earth, we do things a bit differently. I won't go into detail about the other nations, but I can explain the United States. You see, the U.S. requires twelve years of education to earn what we call a high school diploma. It's essentially the lowest form of qualification we offer, and it does not include any military training. In fact, the physical requirements are laughable in most schools. Importantly, Steve has this qualification, but he earned it so long ago that he is missing vital information taught in schools now, and Clint did not have it at all, although he has now earned a General Equivalency Diploma, a GED. 

"Do I need to clarify anything, big guy?"

"No, I do not think so, Man of Iron," although now he is even more confused.

"Right, so there is optional schooling, which we call college or university. These schools are very expensive. In fact, most of them cost half as much per year as the average American family brings home. It is quite the priveledge to attend one."

Thor nods. It does not sound too different to the tutors hired in Asgard. Why then would the Captain deny himself this education? Should he not be honored that the Lord Commander Stark is generous enough to provide it, especially to one of such a lower class as the Captain?

"I don't know how it's done on Asgard, but in the U.S., joining the military means two months of Basic Training. This time is where new recruits learn basic regulations and strategy, combat skills, and get into physical condition."

"You did so with us," Thor says, surprisingly unoffended.

"Yes, although in this case, the physical portion was less about getting everyone in shape and more about learning everyone's abilities, and the other training was more about ensuring there were no gaps, especially for Rogers."

Thor is confused. He would have thought the training more necessary for Friend Bruce. The Healer is a gentle soul, a scholar more so than even his dear Lady Jane. In Asgard, some noble or even the All-Father himself would hire such a man to study and treat the injured of the House, but he would never see combat. If an attack were to occur, he would be secured and protected alongside the women and children. 

Tony sighs; he does not want to say what he is about to share, "SHIELD is not military, but the training its operatives go through is quite similar, so there was little worry about whether or not Clint and Natasha know the basics. Bruce never formally served, but he worked alongside the military for years before the Hulk emerged, so he has a decent idea of when to stay away, which is really all he needs to know in terms of such training, especially since, as a doctor, his skills with field medicine far outstrip any first aid training we might provide. You are a warrior prince, so while the details may vary, the basics would most likely be the same, and I myself spent seventeen years in the military, so my knowledge is fairly well set. Steve, though," he takes a breath, "Thor, Steve isn't a real soldier. He never finished Basic. That's the biggest reason I insisted upon it."

"What?!" Thor booms. 

"Yeah, that was my reaction too. I thought, well, I knew Steve wasn't a real officer. Do you remember when I talked about the college degrees? In order to be eligible for officer training, you have to have a Bachelor's degree, and Steve doesn't have one. He also certainly never went through officer training."

"He is a fraud."

"Yes, although it is not intentional. He believes it."

"I do not understand."

"Captain America is just a character that the U.S. Army created to sell war bonds - to get money for the war. However, after he disobeyed orders to rescue his friend Bucky, the S.S.R., not the U.S. Army, allowed him to operate a small team which was formally called the 107th infantry and informally called the Howling Commandoes or the Howlies. The team's orders came from Lt. Col. Phillips. Steve was allowed to act as the figurehead, and they let him think he was in charge, but its success rested largely on the fact that it was comprised mainly of officers and Sergeants. It was seen as good press."

Thor nods. Puppet rulers are common in all realms. "Should he not welcome the chance to hold his position truthfully then?"

"That's the crux of the matter. Nobody ever explained to Steve that he is not truthfully a soldier, let alone a leader. When I attempted to broach the subject, he wrote it off as nothing more than a power play on my part. As such, I am trying to instead emphasize that the tutors will help him learn what he has missed-"

"But Friend Steve is stuck in his past."

"Yes, exactly," Tony takes another sip of the amber liquid. 

"What do you intend to do, Lord Commander Stark?" Thor asks formally.

"I have yet to decide, Your Highness, but if Rogers continues to refuse his integration and education, I will be forced to remove him from the Initiative," Tony responds.

Thor sighs. He likes Steve, Son of Sarah, but if the man continues to be so arrogant and dismissive of the opportunities he is given and the requirements he must meet, Lord Tony will have no reason to keep him. Soldiers must obey their superiors, after all. 

**Author's Note:**

> So, this felt weird to write. It didn't really flow how I wanted it, but I'm pretty satisfied with it. 
> 
> This fic is another little dip into the idea of Tony having been in the military, although here that's not really the focus. :/ Like with "Genius. Billionaire. Soldier. Philanthropist." I'm not sure if this fic will fit into my larger story, but it helped work out a few concepts for it. 
> 
> One of the things I liked dipping into is the idea of how the Allspeak would translate military titles and how that would effect things. So, yes, Tony is a Lt. Col., but the Allspeak translates it to Thor as Lord Commander, which furthers his belief that Tony is nobility. My thoughts are that, given Asgard's warrior culture, Tony's service in the Air Force can only raise Thor's respect for him, and his having such a high rank (combined with Stark Industries being what it is) will make Thor eye him and think, "Ah, yes, my kind of man!"
> 
> Another thing I like is the idea of Tony bringing in tutors to help with Rogers' integration. It's not just seventy years of history he's missed, it's seventy years of politics, science, etc. So my thought is that Tony brought in world class tutors to help Rogers integrate and invited the rest of the team to tag along. Thor readily agreed because, as a Prince, he knows he needs to know most of this information. Clint came in because he wants his GED, so he stops feeling so dumb and unqualified. Natasha goes, ostensibly to support Clint, but actually, both the Red Room and SHIELD overlooked a lot. Bruce goes for some of the lessons in law and politics, but he obviously doesn't need the lessons in math, science, or how to use Microsoft Word.
> 
> The goal was to give Rogers (and the others) a firm foundation of knowledge, but the secondary goal was to help Rogers meet the requirements for actually being a Captain, since he refuses to recognize that he isn't one. Basically, he was going to take CLEP tests to see if he had truly learned the material and gain credit. He would do this until he earned an Associate's Degree. At that point, if he was willing, the hope would be to enroll him in in-person classes, so he could meet others, but online courses (possibly still taught by the tutors) is also a possibility. 
> 
> As for Officer Training, Tony had hoped to arrange for Rogers to attend it - or for Tony and Rhodey to somehow piecemeal it, as they did with Basic Training - under the guise of "filling in the gaps of what you've missed." 
> 
> However, Rogers balks at the idea of all of it. He thinks Tony should step aside and let Rogers lead the team; it's what Col. Phillips did, after all. He also thinks that Tony should stop flashing him money around and insulting them. What's he thinking, hiring tutors for them like they're kids? And anyway, he lead men in the War, he doesn't need any training to lead a team.
> 
> Now, whether or not Rogers "gives in" and does the lessons and training to shut up Tony or continues to refuse until he's kicked off the team is up for you to decide. Personally, I'm leaning towards the former, although I'm not sure whether Rogers actually passes any of it. :)


End file.
